The TS endorses the conviction of a man who abused his ex-partner when he was almost unconscious due to the intake of drugs

The Supreme Court says that "what is relevant" is that she was in "a state of drowsiness", not how she took the medications

MADRID, 2 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Supreme Court (TS) has upheld the sentence of 12 and a half years in prison handed down by the Provincial Court of Santa Cruz de Tenerife against a man who sexually abused his ex-partner while he was in a "state of deep drowsiness" due to the medication intake, emphasizing that "what is relevant" is that she was practically unconscious, not how she took the drugs, in response to the alleged contradictions pointed out by the convicted person in his appeal.

In a judgment dated December 21, to which Europa Press has had access, the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court rejects the appeal filed by the man, thus confirming his sentence to 12 years and 6 months in prison for continued crimes. of sexual and privacy abuse, and to pay the victim compensation of 15,000 euros, a ruling that has already been endorsed by the Superior Court of Justice (TSJ) of the Canary Islands.

The events date back to October 2018, two months after the victim and aggressor ended the sentimental relationship they had maintained for 24 years. Despite the breakup, they continued to share a house and, according to the ruling, he took advantage of this circumstance to add benzodiazepines and anxiolytics "covertly in the meals" that he gave to his ex-partner, which "caused her to fall into a deep state of drowsiness that annulled his volitional and sensory capacity".

In this context, "without his consent and taking advantage of his state of unconsciousness, he carried out different acts of sexual content", from touching to penetration, which he recorded with his mobile phone.

She denounced the facts in December 2019, giving rise to a judicial process that ended with the aforementioned sentence. However, he filed successive appeals, reaching the Supreme Court, where he alleged the victim's "lack of credibility" due to "inconsistencies in her testimony" about the intake of psychotropic drugs.

In this sense, the appeal detailed that in the complaint she denied having taken them, during the investigation phase she said that she had consumed them in the past and finally stated that, "given the suspicions she had about that intake, she had not eaten food for a long time in the house where he lived with the defendant". However, the man stated that it was "consensual sexual games".

The Second Chamber rejects the challenge stating that the ingestion of medications was proven and emphasizing that "what is relevant" in this case is not so much "how they were supplied" but "the effects they produced on the victim", which were verified in the recordings. made by the convict himself.

In this regard, the magistrates emphasize that the videos show that the woman was in "a state of drowsiness close to deprivation of sense", "incapable of exercising her sexual freedom."

In addition, they ratify the assessment of the Provincial Court and the TSJ by stating that this "deep drowsiness" was the product of "the intake of drugs surreptitiously provided by the defendant."